The Nightmare Hill Chronicle
by Thunderclan
Summary: The continuing chronicle of Ghost Master Monzel in the new town of Nightmare Hill.
1. Intro

As the pale light of the full moon shined down on the ancient walls of Nightmare Hill Castle the night was split by terrible screams. Flashes of white light that rivaled that of the moon illuminated the stones in brief bursts, revealing the trio of strange figures moving along the wall between two towers.

As they neared a low point, where the masonry had crumbled and partially collapsed over the years and which had not been fully covered by the wards that had enclosed the castle another flash lit up the night and as one they threw themselves towards freedom, the first two sliding over the edge and out of sight while the third was hit by the beam. The unfortunate soul cried out as the light wrapped around him, dragging him backwards even as he fought and struggled. There was just enough time for him to shout an angry curse at the pair he could see fleeing into the night before he was dragged off the wall and down into the castle courtyard…

As they reached the narrow band of forest that separated the castle from the Western side of Nightmare Hill the fleeing figures stopped to look back at the castle.

"This disaster is on your head Struva." Tarmid said angrily as he gestured in the castle's direction. "I warned you that the castle was too much for us but you insisted on going through with this mad plan anyway!"

"Silence." Struva replied as he gazed intently at the now dark building. "You have no right to question my decisions, I am Ghost Master here, not you."

"Much to the dismay of everyone it would seem." Tarmid said softly, though Struva still heard.

"This is merely a setback Tarmid, we will have it set right in mere days." Struva replied confidently.

"How?" He yelled, rounding on the Ghost Master. "This ambush cost you what remained of your team! Every single one of your haunters has either been captured by those cursed Ghostbreakers or deserted to avoid that fate."

"Then the Committee will simply have to send us reinforcements." Struva answered. "Better haunters then the rabble they sent us here with."

"No Struva. I remained silent despite my growing doubts, even as your poor choices cost you haunter after haunter. I will not stay quiet now though; will not allow your incompetence to trap even more ghosts." Tarmid said quietly as he turned away from the Ghost Master and floated off towards the lights of the town.

"You will pay for this treachery." Struva muttered under his breath as the scout vanished from sight. Still muttering to himself the defeated Ghost Master floated off in the opposite direction…watched the whole time by the large man who had lurked in the shadows during the conversation and now slowly moved to follow Struva.

The chambers of the Haunter Committee were filled with voices as the members talked among themselves, all wondering what had happened in the mortal world to warrant an emergency meeting. The conversation drifted into silence as the large double doors at the end of the hall opened to admit Balam, the head of the Committee, who hurried to take his place at the head of the long table.

"Thank you for gathering on such short notice everyone." Balam said as he took his seat. "I'm afraid that we have a bit of a crisis on our hands. Nightmare Hill has been lost."

"What do you mean Balam?" An air spirit asked from down the table.

"Ghost Master Struva's team has been wiped out. His scout returned here and reported on Struva's disastrous campaign." Balam replied, glancing down at the report Tarmid had provided him. "From the sound of it, he completely ignored Tarmid's advice on planning their hauntings, instead choosing to strike where he chose. This led to a large portion of his team being trapped or captured by the mortals. The remainder deserted him and we don't know what has become of them."

"What about Struva?" A large white cat mewed from her seat.

"He has not returned and Tarmid could not tell us where he may have gone. Perhaps he chose to exile himself rather than face his defeat or perhaps he is lurking somewhere and plotting." Balam answered.

"I should have seen this coming." Rakarth said from his seat on Balam's left. "Struva showed great promise during his training but I was worried even then that his attitude wasn't right for a Ghost Master, too arrogant and sure that his way was best. This is as much my fault as his."

"No Rakarth." Balam said, putting a comforting hand on the old ghost's shoulder. "You can only teach a ghost the art of haunting, how they choose to use it is up to them. Struva made his decision and now he is dealing with the consequences."

"We do still need to decide what can be done about the town though." Drycha reminded them from her seat on Balam's other side. "That town was already filled to bursting with hostile mortals and I fear that Struva's defeat is only going to make them more determined."

"We need to assign a new Ghost Master as soon as possible!" Another council member screamed from down the table, setting off a tidal wave of questions and loud discussions which stopped as quickly as it began when Rakarth banged his staff against the floor of the chamber, the sound amplified to booming levels by his power.

"Thank you Rakarth." Balam said as order was restored to the chamber. "Now, we agree that we must assign someone else to the town quickly but the question is, who do we send? Drycha, who is in the area at the moment?"

Summoning a sheet of paper from her office with a thought the nature spirit's eyes skimmed over the page, picking out pertinent information. "We have three Ghost Masters currently on assignment in towns close to Nightmare Hill. Soulscreech, Azrael and The Nightmare Chef." She replied though from the frown on her face Balam could tell she was not done.

"Unfortunately, we can't reassign them anywhere. Soulscreech has reported that a group of mediums have been giving her ghosts trouble and infiltrating their defenses has proven difficult. The chef, as you know, prefers to work with a small but experienced team instead of the larger, more varied forces the other Master's use. He simply does not have the numbers needed for an undertaking of this magnitude." She reported, pausing for a moment to summon another paper before continuing.

"As for Azrael, he has just ended a siege of a Ghostbreaker base, that while a success, has left his team battered and in need of time to recover their strength. He reported that they were utilizing some new technology that really did a number on his haunters."

"We'll have to decide who to pull." Balam said with a resigned sigh. "The situation in Nightmare Hill won't wait."

"Not yet." Drycha cut in before anyone else could speak. "Just because there isn't anyone close doesn't mean there isn't someone farther afield we could reassign." Reaching down beside her chair she brought up a large leather-bound book, pulled a loose page out and spread it over the table before her.

Color bled into the page as the Committee waited, forming roads and natural features while clusters of buildings rose up to mark the mortal towns and cities. A tiny flock of bats materialized and began circling Nightmare Hill.

The other committee members were respectfully silent as they watched Drycha manipulate the map to look at different areas and check things in her book. They could see that it was not going well though by the increasingly concerned expression on her face. Several members jumped in surprise when she suddenly let out a cry of victory.

"Gravenville." Drycha said as she turned her gaze on Balam and Rakarth.

"Monzel" Rakarth murmured to himself as Balam addressed Drycha.

"Are you sure? Monzel is still a very new Ghost Master, despite her astounding victories. Do you really think she could pull this off?" He asked, a tiny shred of doubt evident in his voice.

"I think she can." Rakarth interrupted. "As you said, Monzel has pulled off some impressive victories and I feel that we need someone like her on this assignment."

"Plus, Gravenville can spare it's Ghost Master. The latest reports from Zulban have stated that the town is quiet, our enemies seem to be focusing their attention in other places these days." Drycha reported.

"Very well then. Monzel it is." Balam decided. "Anyone opposed?" He asked, staring down the table. When nobody spoke up he returned his attention to Rakarth. "Go and tell her the news Rakarth"


	2. Preparing the Team

Monzel walked quietly along the carpeted hall, nodding a greeting at a well-dressed woman gazing out from a wall mirror as she passed. Pushing open a pair of double doors the young woman moved over to the large table in the center of the room, being careful not to disturb the owl that was perched on the back of a chair.

As she approached, the map laid out on the table began to change as buildings rose up, showing areas that had been of interest to the Committee. Now though, each building was circled by a miniature flock of bats, showing at a glance that whatever had to be done there was done.

Turning away from the table, she glanced briefly around the room, remembering what it had looked like after the Ghostbreakers had been driven out. Her teacher, Rakarth had called in an old favor he was owed by one of the Temporal Clerks and gotten the destroyed room restored to its old look. The spacious room had proved useful as both a planning room and personal quarters for the Ghost Master and her companions.

"Monzel?" A voice said from behind the doors, followed quickly by a knock.

"Come in!" Monzel said loudly, a smile on her face as Rakarth came through the doors.

Rakarth was an ancient spirit, having been around for several hundred years. He had found death to be similar to life, having served as a teacher of great minds before his death. The Committee had appointed as the Ghost Master trainer long ago and he had settled into the role. In his own opinion he was doing something even greater. To him the art of haunting was a far more complicated thing to teach then anything mortals learned.

He had had great success too, mentoring some of the finest Ghost Masters, among them the headless biker Azrael and the strange but talented Nightmare Chef. Despite the reputation of such illustrious Masters he had found his greatest student in Monzel, who had shown herself to be a master of strategy and tactics before her training even began.

It had been Rakarth's own suggestion that the talented young woman be assigned to Gravenville when Balam and the others needed someone to restore the mortal's belief in the supernatural. With the aid of a growing team she had succeeded and had even sent the Ghostbreakers running in terror not once but three separate times.

"I have news from the Committee." Rakarth said once he and Monzel were seated. With a nudge Monzel woke the owl who rose into the air to stretch her wings before settling on the Ghost Master's shoulder.

"Cuare, lovely to see you my dear." Rakarth said, smiling at the small owl who served as Monzel's advisor.

"What's the news?" Monzel asked, curiosity getting the better of her patience.

"Alright, I'll cut to the chase then. You're being reassigned." Rakarth replied. "Things went very wrong in the town of Nightmare Hill and the Committee is in need of someone to fix the problems."

"So you suggested me?" Monzel asked.

"Actually, I only seconded the proposal. Drycha is the one who thought of you this time." Rakarth answered.

"You said there were problems, what do you mean?" She asked after a quick word with Cuare.

"The Ghost Master we assigned proved incompetent. He got his entire team either trapped or captured and then fled. We still don't know what became of him. His scout is the one who reported everything." Rakarth explained.

"Would it be someone I know?" Monzel asked curiously.

"I doubt it." Rakarth replied. "Baugh was named a Master around the time you started your training. He had promise but apparently my teachings didn't stick."

"It's worse then that though. The scout reported witches, shaman and Ghostbreakers operating within the city." He continued.

"It'll be tricky but I have faith in my team." Monzel said confidently. "Though it will take a few days to get everyone ready to go…"

"I'm afraid you can't take your haunters…At least not all of them." Rakarth interrupted.

"What?" That one word was all she could get out as she sat confused.

"You have a huge team Monzel, taking them all…or even a large portion of them, would attract far too much attention. You'll need time to set up your new headquarters and get the lay of the land before making too many waves." Rakarth explained.

"You'll start better then you did here though. The Committee discussed it for quite some time and it was decided that ten haunters would be enough to get you started without being big enough to alarm anyone." He continued explaining as the confusion on Monzel's face faded.

"So, really only eight since I'll need Christie and Cuare." Monzel said after a moments thought.

"No, I meant ten. Christie, Cuare and Zulban aren't counted among that. Your second in command, advisor and scout. There is no way we would send you without them. We're not completely crazy." Rakarth reassured her with a grin.

"It will probably take us a few days to choose who to take." Monzel said as she returned the grin. "Plus I'll have to explain all this to Christie and Zulban."

"Whenever you're ready let us know." Rakarth said before turning the conversation to other topics…

After Rakarth left, Monzel wasted no time in sending Cuare to fetch Zulban while she rounded up Christie. Once the four of them were settled in Monzel's quarters again the Ghost Master gave them a simplified version of the Committee's decision.

As she finished Christie raised the subject on all their minds. "Who do we take?"

"That is the big question" Cuare said from her perch on the back of Monzel's chair. "From what Zulban and myself have been able to gather from the scouting report there were a number of enemies scattered around the city during Baugh's time there but since his scout returned after Baugh fled we have no idea what to expect."

"That is why I feel that the best plan is to form the base of the new team from some of our most versatile haunters. Boo, Clatterclaws and Cogjammer are members of my original team and are some of the most experienced ghosts we have." Monzel said, looking around the table to see the others nodding in agreement.

"We'll need some elemental power as well." Christie said, knowing that as a Storm Spirit she had a feel for the powers wielded by the Elementals.

Several hours passed as the quartet slowly built the list. Finally, as sunshine seeped through the stained glass window Monzel made a final change to the list and put down her pen.

"I think this is as close as we're going to get with only ten names." The Ghost Master said as she ran her eyes down the paper. "Once we get on site and start recruiting we'll have a clearer picture."

"I'll go and let Rakarth know we're ready then while you go and gather the team." Cuare said as she spread her wings and took to the air…


	3. Arrival in Nightmare Hill

"As you've no doubt heard by now." Monzel said, shooting a stern glance at Boo, who just grinned as he waved at her from the ceiling. "We've been reassigned to a new town, though due to the nature of our mission only a handful of you will be joined us in Nightmare Hill."

"Christie, Zulban and myself have spent a great deal of time deciding which of you will come with us and have at last finalized the list." Here she broke off to consult the list briefly before continuing.

"Boo, Clatterclaws and Cogjammer will form the base of the new team due to their vast amount of field experience." Monzel said, glancing at each one to be sure they had heard.

"Firetail and Whisperwind will handle any elemental concerns we may have during our initial haunting, while Terroreyes will provide a bit of extra scaring power."

"Wisakejak, Daydreamer and Scarecrow will provide several useful powers as well as allowing us more mobility. Finally, Dragoon will take care of any of the tougher skeptics." Monzel said with a small smile, remembering the terror the Horseman had put into the Ghostbreakers during their failed attempt at eradicating the ghosts.

"What about the rest of us Captain?" Thorne spoke up from the back of the crowd.

"While I'm away the rest of you are on standing orders. Go out every once in a while to keep the mortals believing. Other then that consider yourselves on vacation."

"We won't let you down Boss!" Knuckles shouted from the side door, startling Buck and sending a cloud of fleas hopping around the room in search of something to attack. Finding no mortals around the tiny pests burrowed back into the canine's matted fur.

"Those of you coming with us, we leave tomorrow so make sure you're ready." With that done, Monzel headed for the stairs to finish her own preparations…

Gliding through the doors of the Ghoul Room, Monzel came to a stop beside Rakarth, who had come to see them off and was now engaged in conversation with Zulban. Cuare was flapping back and forth among the ghosts, making sure everybody was present.

Turning back for a last look at her headquarters, she let her mind wander briefly back over the events that had led up to this point.

"Rakarth, I'm counting on you to keep this lot in line for me." She said with a smile as she tilted her head towards the building.

"Don't worry, I'll check up on them once in a while and if anything should happen I'll be sure to notify you." The ancient haunter replied, returning his student's smile.

"Right then…I think we're ready." Monzel said, glancing at Christie and seeing her friend nod in agreement. As a portal opened, covering everything in a greenish tint the young Ghost Master took a deep breath and stepped through, wondering what new challenges she'd be faced with…

Floating beside the portal, which had opened up high in the air to prevent any attention being drawn to their arrival, Monzel watched as her team came through, making sure that no one wandered off.

Cuare arrived in a flutter of wings, Zulban and Christie close behind. As her feathered friend flew circles around the group, Monzel turned her gaze on the city as Zulban came to a stop beside her.

"Quite a sight isn't it?" Zulban asked, nodding in the direction of Nightmare Hill Castle, lit by bright spotlights on the far end of town.

"Indeed…Where do we start?" She replied, mind reeling slightly from the size of the city and with it the size of the job before her.

"With the Ghoul Room of course." Christie said from behind them, the playfulness in her tone obvious as she tried to lighten the load on her friend's mind.

"Of course, Zulban, any ideas?" Monzel asked, shooting the Thunder Spirit a quick smile before turning to the scout.

"Well, there are a number of old buildings around town. The Castle would have been a fine place but that was Baugh's headquarters and the Ghostbreakers are probably still watching it given the recent events. I'll have to do some scouting before I can give any solid advice."

"Go to it then, I'll feel better once we're settled again." She ordered as she turned to gaze at the ghosts now floating about nearby as the portal faded to nothing…

The team was getting visibly uneasy being out in the open for so long in a strange area when Zulban returned, though Monzel was still concerned by the look on the scout's face.

"Sorry I'm late." He said as he came to float beside Monzel and Christie. "Had a little trouble along the way."

"What kind of trouble?" Christie asked, though she felt sure of the answer already.

"Some Ghostbreakers and mediums were wandering the streets and they managed to follow me for a little while before I could ditch them." He explained.

"Anything we should be worried about?" Monzel asked, concerned at the possibility of being discovered so soon.

"No, they're just trying to clear the town of spirits. We'll see to them soon enough." Zulban answered.

"Did you have any luck finding a place for our headquarters?" Christie asked

"It took a while but I found a good spot in the old part of town. An old music hall, plenty of space for this team and any recruits we pick up along the way. Also I managed to find out a few other important things." The scout reported, pride in completing his mission filling his voice.

"Go on, we have time." Monzel decided, waving him on.

"There's a coven of witches holed up in one of the factories on the far end of town, not sure what they're up to but I saw a couple of them heading out though I didn't take the time to pursue them."

"The Ghostbreakers seem to be operating out of several locations though I can't say right now where their main base is. Surprisingly though the Castle isn't under surveillance."

"Good work Zulban." Monzel said as she worked to process this information. Mind still sorting everything she turned to Christie. "Let's get over to this music hall and put on a symphony of terror." She said with pleasure, relieved to finally have a place to start…

Only a small number of people remained within the walls of the music hall, as Monzel discovered when she took a quick float through the place, a group of musicians using the space for cheap practice and living space. Satisfied with her brief look at the building the Ghost Master returned to her team. "This place will do nicely, but first we'll have to introduce ourselves to the mortals." She said as she looked over her team. "Let's get to work…"


	4. Symphony of Terror

Music drifted through the old wood paneled rooms as the orchestra practiced. At a signal from the maestro the song broke off mid-note as the musicians looked up from their instruments.

"I'm sorry guys, it still doesn't sound right." Cesar Newell said as he set his baton on the stand in front of him.

"I told you Cesar, we need more people. The seven of us aren't enough to get the right sound." Stacey Braddock said from her position behind the timpani.

"And with you conducting we only have six instruments playing." Julia Reyer added as she gently placed her violin back into its case.

"I'm well aware of that." Cesar said with a sigh. "We can't afford to hire anymore musicians though. Renting this place is taking most of our funds."

"Why did you decide to bring us here anyway?" Jarred Samuels asked, flute laying across his legs.

"Because this hall once hosted some of the best orchestras in the world and I hoped that we could restore the place to its former glory and become the next one." Newell answered before sighing again. "Plus it was cheaper then any of the other places. The guy that owns the place was planning to have it bulldozed but decided that he might make more money off of us then he would otherwise."

"Well at this rate he may never see a good payday from us." Rodger said from his seat beside Jarred.

"We'll go ask around at the college once they get back in session." Cesar said. "Maybe we'll find a few talented people to join us." Though from the tone of his voice he wasn't nearly as hopeful as he could be.

As the musicians rose from their seats to stretch tired limbs and return instruments to their cases the trumpet Simone was polishing jumped out of her hands and zipped across the room. Music began to flow from the hovering instrument while the would-be orchestra looked on.

As the notes continued to rise the trumpeter began to materialize, finally forming into the rather unthreatening shape of Boo, giving the mortals a little wave as he played.

Glancing up from the instrument, the Spook saw the signal and nodding slightly he blew a single long note that echoed off the walls. The mortals slapped hands over their ears to block out the noise as spiders erupted from the mouth of the trumpet, spilling down onto the musicians below.

Screaming as she tried to untangle the creatures from her hair and hold her ears at the same time, Skyler finally gave up the futile effort and ran from the room, not even noticing when the arachnids slipped off to skitter back into the practice hall.

Cesar was swiping the things off his neck and arms when he spotted the small flame burning near the ceiling. With a sudden flare the fire leapt down the wall, engulfing ancient wood and old posters and ads as it went.

"Everyone out!" He yelled, just managing to make himself heard over the barrage of sound still pouring out of Boo's trumpet.

Grabbing instruments and whatever else they could as they went, the remainder of the group sped out of the room and out of the building, feeling relieved when they saw Skyler sitting on the steps.

Christie watched as Simone handed Skyler her violin, safely nestled in its case and then helped her up as the orchestra headed towards the parking lot, their instincts to call the fire department suppressed by Wisakejak as he followed them.

Satisfied, the Storm Spirit popped through the wall and down the hall to the practice room.

"They're on the way out, Wily's keeping them from reporting anything." She said as she spotted Monzel floating near the ceiling. As she heard this she turned to speak to Firetail, and the flames vanished as quickly as they'd come.

"You can stop now Boo." Monzel said as she drifted slowly to the floor.

Lowering the instrument the ghost looked around before vanishing deeper into the building and a few minutes later the much muffled sounds of trumpet music could be heard.

"That Spook does enjoy himself." Cuare remarked as she swooped down to land on Monzel's shoulder.

"It's too bad you scared off the musicians, they were rather good." A new voice said from behind the Ghost Master. Turning she saw a ghost standing beside a pile of empty instrument cases. From his outfit alone she could guess he had been a conductor in life but the baton gripped in one hand was a dead giveaway.

"I'm sorry." Monzel apologized. "We didn't think there were any ghosts here."

"Quite all right." The stranger said. "I make an effort to remain unseen and it's kept me safe from all these new folks roaming around hunting ghosts."

"Well, if you want we can leave. I'm sure we can find another spot for our Ghoul Room." Monzel said, though she wondered silently if that would be true.

"Ghoul Room? I suppose that makes you a Ghost Master then." The ghost said, not bothering to wait for an answer. "In that case you're welcome here. Just promise me you'll be better then that young fool that was here before."

"Baugh came here?" Monzel asked.

The spirit nodded. "He found me here too and wanted me to join him. I turned him down though, he seemed like a rather unpleasant sort of ghost. Heard he got on the wrong side of the Ghostbreakers."

"On the other hand." He continued before anyone could interrupt him. "You seem to know what you're doing. That bit with the trumpet was genius…and quite entertaining. I think I could work with you, if you'll have me that is."

"I'd never turn down such an offer." Monzel said with a smile. "Though it might help if I had a name to work with."

"Baton Bailey, former Maestro of the Nightmare Hill Orchestra at your service." Baton said with a deep bow. "Now if you will excuse me I'd like to make sure the musician's remaining things find their way to the parking lot."

"Of course, we need to get the team settled in anyway." Monzel said as she watched the conductor gather up some bags and instruments and vanish out the door…


	5. Night at the Office

Several days had passed since Monzel's team had claimed the music hall and her ghosts had settled in well. The Ghost Master was talking with Baton Bailey, who had provided some useful info despite having only rarely left the hall, when Zulban came shooting through a window.

"Monzel, there is a small problem I think we should address…quickly." The scout said as he spotted her.

Seeing that some of her haunters were watching with interest and concern and fearing she knew the cause of Zulban's distress, Monzel put a hand up to stop him before he could say more.

"Let's take this to my quarters." She said before vanishing up through the ceiling…

Once gathered around the table in Monzel's quarters with Christie, Monzel spoke the question on her mind.

"Who found us? Ghostbreakers? Witches? Or something worse?" Concern over being discovered so soon plain in her voice as she watched her scout look at her in confusion.

"What? Nobody found us. At least not as far as I know." Zulban said.

"Then what's the big problem?" Christie asked.

"Our headquarters is going to be reduced to rubble in a few days." He said bluntly, getting straight to the point.

"What! Why!" Monzel demanded.

"Well…Apparently the musicians aren't coming back so the guy that owns the place has gone back to his original plan: tear down the music hall and put up a fancy hotel." Zulban explained, mentally berating himself for not considering this possibility before they drove out the mortals.

"Can we fix this?" Christie asked.

"No…" Zulban replied. "I spent a little time at the guy's office and he is determined to see this place flattened by the end of the week, no matter what it takes."

"Really, you're just going to give up?" Monzel asked with a triumphant smile. "Fixing this is so simple. Remember Don Bartholomew?"

"The crime lord from Gravenville?" Zulban asked not seeing the point of the question. "Lived on a private yacht?"

"Exactly." Monzel said. "You're sure it's just one guy? Not a group?"

"Yes. I'm sure of it." Zulban answered.

"Perfect, you said we have a few days before anything gets destroyed. So we'll do what we did with the don…strike hard and focus on the guy in charge. We drive him out of town and we'll be in good shape." Monzel explained.

"We may also want to destroy the deed if we can." Cuare said from Monzel's chair. "That way no one else can continue the demolition."

"Good thinking Cuare, we'll make sure Firetail is with us so we can burn the thing to cinders." Monzel said, grateful for her feathered friend's advice. Taking her handbook from a pocket of her cloak, she pulled the map of Nightmare Hill Rakarth had given her out and spread it over the table before returning to the discussion of her plan…

Stepping lightly through the portal, Monzel found herself on a low rooftop across the street from a slightly taller building. Zulban stood near the edge, eyes locked on the building.

"This is the place?" Monzel asked as she came up beside the scout. Behind her the team chosen for the vital task came through the portal, gathering off to one side.

"Yes, the guy who holds the deed to the music hall, a man named Shelton Avery runs his business out of this building." Zulban confirmed, never taking his eyes from the building.

"Any idea how many others are in there with him?" Monzel questioned, hoping she had brought enough haunters to pull this off.

"Only a half dozen or so, most of the workers have left already so it will mostly be security." Zulban replied.

"We'd better get to work then." Monzel said, gesturing to her team to stay put before heading across the street to do some scouting of her own…

Moving along the halls and poking her head into offices and cubicles, the Ghost Master found that Zulban was right; aside from a trio of security guards and a few late workers the building was deserted.

A strange chittering sound drew her attention as she went by and curiously, Monzel passed through the door into a room that had apparently been ignored by the janitors for years given the amount of dust piled on the counters and old computers.

The sound grew louder as she glanced around the room, finally zeroing in on the source of the noise.

A small beetle stood between two computers, glowing a soft green color. Looking more closely, Monzel could make out a pattern of numbers shifting across the beetle's shell.

"Cuare, can you understand him?" Monzel asked the owl as the bug's volume increased further.

"My beetle's a little rusty but the gist of it is that he has no electricity to escape this place." The owl said from her perch on Monzel's shoulder.

"Well, I think getting some power to this room should be fairly easy." Monzel decided after a moment's consideration.

The pair left a few minutes later, returning to the roof to collect the team…

"Alissa!" The woman tapping away at her computer turned at the sound of her name as her boss appeared from his office.

"Yes Mr. Avery?" She asked.

"Did you make all the arrangements for the demolition yet?" Shelton demanded.

"Not yet sir, I doubt I would get hold of anyone this late so I was going to wait and do it first thing tomorrow morning." Alissa replied.

"Make sure you do, I want that music hall turned to rubble quickly so the builders can start laying foundations for the new apartments." Shelton said, not happy with the answer but able to see the logic behind it.

"Sir…Why do you want to destroy the music hall anyway? Wouldn't it be better to preserve such a glorious piece of the town's past?" Alissa asked cautiously.

"Miss Renaud." Avery began. "The music hall may have once been a hotspot for Nightmare Hill's people but now it is nothing but a useless eyesore. Since the orchestra that asked to practice there left due to a fire there is no reason to put off the demolition any longer."

"Now." He continued before his secretary could reply. "I will be in my office and I do not want to be disturbed unless there is an emergency." As he turned to go back to his office the lights flickered briefly before returning to normal. "And call Maintenance to fix the lights." With that he vanished into his office, closing the door behind him as Alissa picked up her phone…

Lambert Travers grumbled under his breath as he descended the stairs toward the maintenance room. He had been so close to being free for the night but Alissa's call had come just seconds before he walked out the door. Knowing that Mr. Avery wouldn't be pleased if he left the lighting problems until morning he left his stuff in the lobby and turned back toward his office.

The grumbling turned to a curse as the lights flickered again and then died, plunging the hall into near darkness save for a few small emergency lights on the walls. Pulling a small flashlight from his pocket he flicked it on and continued on, cursing Avery and the lights in a low voice.

Finally reaching his destination, Travers opened the door and stopped short. The interior of the room was in chaos, electricity sparking from some sort of creature that was currently rooting around in one of the breaker panels.

"Hey! Get away from there!" Lambert shouted, moving across the room toward the thing which vanished with a shriek as he reached the panel. Visibly shocked by that he was unprepared for the next surprise as the lights flicked back to life…revealing a sea of spiders skittering over most of the room.

The color draining from his face as he gazed at the mass of bugs, the arachnophobic maintenance man screamed and ran blindly from the room, back up the stairs, past the startled security guards in the lobby and out of the building while downstairs Clatterclaws gathered up her horde while Monzel gave orders to the rest of her team…

"Remember." Monzel instructed her team sternly. "We need that deed destroyed, nothing else matters if we fail in that. And we need to be quick." Leaving her ghosts to carry out their orders the Ghost Master headed for Avery's office with Firetail.

With almost perfect precision the building completely blacked out while Clatterclaws shot along her carefully constructed web, dropping small numbers of spiders as she worked her way through the main office space and the lobby.

Avery was fumbling for the flashlight he kept handy for just such an occasion, still oblivious to the chaos outside his door when a spark of light illuminated the dark office. At first glance it appeared that a flame had spontaneously erupted from thin air but as he stepped closer he could see that there was actually a lizard sitting in the middle of the flames.

"You might want to stay back a bit." Avery whipped around at the sound of the unknown voice, waving the beam of his flashlight around uselessly, completely neglecting the warning until the flames brightened and grew stronger, sending the mortal backing away from the growing heat.

"I did warn you." The voice continued. "Now listen, it would be best if you left Nightmare Hill for a while as we don't need you causing any more trouble for us later on."

"What is that thing doing to my safe!" Avery demanded as he watched the lizard sink down into the softening metal.

"He's destroying a certain deed as you no longer control the property, we do." The voice replied casually.

"The music hall." Shelton said confidently. "That's why the musicians won't go back; it's been infested with ghosts. Those Ghostbreaker guys will love this."

His next words were lost in a shrill scream as Shelton was thrown back, tumbling into his chair as Monzel appeared before him, cloak whipping about her and eyes blazing in fury. "We're only here for the music hall but if you tell them Firetail will destroy _everything_ in the safe. Are we clear?" Faced with the fearsome spirit the mortal was only able to nod slightly as he cowered in his chair.

"Good." Leaving the mortal to his cowering the Ghost Master swept over to Firetail. "Most impressive." The salamander said brightly "I doubt we'll have to worry about him any more."

"Thanks, I have to protect our location after all." Monzel said. "How we doing here?"

"Should be just about through!" The elemental's words became drawn out as the melting safe finally gave way and he dropped through the lizard shaped hole.

"You alright?" Monzel called down.

"Just fine, now give me a minute to find what we came here for." Firetail called back to her, his voice echoing in the metal square.

"Here we go one deed to the Nightmare Hill Music Hall." Firetail said proudly as he clambered up out of the hole, paper clamped firmly in his mouth.

"Good, burn away." She ordered then stepped back as the salamander flared up, lighting the entire room with his flame as the paper blackened and then flaked away, quickly reducing to nothing but a few spots of ash on the floor.

As she saw the threat disintegrate Monzel breathed a sigh of relief. "Let's get out of here." She said, turning and vanishing through the wall to collect Cogjammer and Clatterclaws, Firetail following close behind.

They were just in time, as the quartet of ghosts floated back to where Christie and Zulban were waiting a familiar van screeched to a halt in front of the building and a pair of grey jump suited men got out and vanished through the front doors, already waving their scanners around while on another roof nearby someone else watched as Monzel and her team vanished through a portal.

"So, there's a new Ghost Master in town. Poor fool, she has no idea what she is up against." Petyr said to himself, walking towards the door that would lead him to the stairwell…


	6. Ghost of the Past

Monzel gave a huge sigh of relief as she flopped into a chair in her quarters, grateful for a rest after everything they had gone through since arriving. The spacious room had obviously been built to accommodate the wealthy guests that visited the music hall during its golden age and allow them to enjoy the wonderful music in the lap of luxury.

As soon as they had left the portal the haunters had wandered off to the spots they'd staked out for themselves around the building, just as happy for a break as their leader.

"Tired?" Christie said sympathetically as she drifted into the room.

"It's been rough but at least we're safe here now." Monzel replied. "The real work starts now though."

"Are we ready?" Christie asked.

"We will be, Bailey's been able to give us some useful advice and Zulban's been tracking the movements of the Ghostbreakers and witches, so we'll have ample notice if they get too close."

"Well, I'd suggest taking a day or two before we do anything more. Give the team a bit of a break…and yourself too." Christie said kindly. "We'll need you on top of things if we're going to get anywhere in this town."

"All right, all right." Monzel said with a smile. "Get Zulban's report when he gets back and tell me later."

With a nod the storm spirit breezed out of the room, leaving Monzel to snuggle down in her chair…

Feeling much more alert and ready to tackle whatever Nightmare Hill could throw at her, Monzel had summoned Christie and Zulban to her quarters. They arrived ready to talk about what Zulban had found on his latest scouting mission but the Ghost Master waved them to seats around the main table.

"We've been here for a while now." Monzel said as she looked at her friends. "It's taken us this long to secure our headquarters but now we need to turn our attention to Nightmare Hill itself. This city is still crawling with Ghostbreakers, witches and the like, roaming at will as they banish or capture every ghost they can find."

"Before we can do that though." She continued before anyone could interrupt. "We need to establish our link to the Committee. With Zulban's information they can direct us to where we'll be most effective."

With that Monzel flipped open her handbook, which was resting on the table beside her and drew out a folded paper. Unfolding it she placed it in the center of the table. Nothing happened for a moment but then Monzel's book gave off a brief flash of green light that was mimicked by the paper which began expanding, quickly covering most of the table.

Then color began to bleed onto the paper, forming roads, showing swathes of trees and blocks of buildings as the formerly blank paper became a map of Nightmare Hill and the surrounding area. With another brief flash a circle of green opened and the trio found themselves staring into the meeting chamber of the Haunter Committee.

"Monzel!" Rakarth said, great warmth in his voice as he saw his student. "We were starting to worry about you."

"Indeed." Drycha seconded. "We though something might have gone wrong."

"No, just had a little trouble with securing our Ghoul Room. It's been taken care of now and I have two new members of my team to show for it: Baton Bailey and 404." Monzel reported.

"Excellent!" Balam exclaimed. "So how are things in the city?" He asked, getting down to business.

"According to Zulban, the Ghostbreakers have several bases around the city and a large number of operatives on patrol. We haven't been able to find where they are coordinating everyone from yet. The witches seem to be gathering out in the woods but again we haven't found where. There are also other mortals around that are able to banish." Monzel replied, knowing it wasn't a lot but it was better then nothing.

"We'll get the Department of Clairvoyance working on tracking them." Balam said, gesturing to someone out of sight and a moment later Alrik appeared in the circle, received his orders and zipped away to deliver the message.

"I assume that with your headquarters secure you're ready to start the real work?" Drycha asked with a smile, pleased that her idea was working out so well.

"Yes Drycha. We're ready whenever you find someplace to send us." Christie answered.

"Good, we'll be in touch soon then." Rakarth said as with a final flash the circle closed., leaving Monzel, Christie and Zulban to discuss the scout's findings…

Monzel and Christie were lounging in their quarters when the map on its table changed, several buildings rising up from the map, among them the larger shape of Nightmare Hill Castle. Face brightening at the prospect of new adventures, Monzel reached out and tapped the castle. Immediately the pair heard Balam's voice as an image of the castle appeared to accompany the briefing.

"As you already know this is Nightmare Hill Castle, one of the many ancient homes of the local ghosts…and also the site of one of Baugh's worst screw-ups. This place is vitally important to the local haunters as its legends fueled the mortal's belief in the supernatural. In an attempt to improve the haunting efficiency Baugh began changing routine of the residents only to get them trapped!"

"You must take control of the castle, free the trapped ghosts and make sure that the mortals feel the castle's supernatural aura. Just remember Ghost Master, the castle has few permanent residents so must attract new tourists to continue working smoothly. Do not make its reputation to grim."

The grandeur of the ancient structure was so impressive that Monzel had to stop and stare for a minute while her small team gathered nearby to do some staring of their own. Having worked with Monzel for so long the Gravenville haunters knew that their Ghost Master would not need them until after she had scouted the area…

As she headed through the massive wooden gates into the courtyard Monzel could see several mortals wandering and taking pictures or listening to a guide standing on the far end of the space.

"I guess all the activity around here lately is drawing the tourists. Let's hope they like tonight's show." Monzel said softly as she crossed the courtyard, heading up into the keep.

"Haven't you caused enough trouble around here?" Someone said from the flickering shadows thrown by the torches. Spinning around Monzel found herself unexpectedly looking at the blade of a claymore. "Woah!" The Ghost Master shouted as she backed up a few steps.

"I think you've mistaken me for someone else, this is my first time here." Monzel said soothingly, keeping one eye on the sword.

"Well, you don't sound much like that coward that was here before." The sword wielder said after a moment, stepping forward as he lowered the blade a bit. "Where is he?"

Now that the figure was in the light Monzel could see that the swordsman was Scottish, likely one of the resident ghosts.

"I'm guessing you're talking about Baugh and if so then I'm afraid I don't know where he is. He fled the city." Monzel said.

"Ha! I knew he was a coward. I told Morgan we should have driven that fool out when he first arrived." The Scotsman laughed.

"They sent me to replace Baugh." Monzel explained.

The ghost burst into laughter at this. "A woman? They sent a woman to replace a coward? No wonder your Committee has so much trouble if there's more like you and Baugh working for them."

"You're wrong." Monzel said keeping her voice pleasant, though the insulting spirit was beginning to get on her nerves. "Speaking for myself, I have already led a victorious campaign of terror in the town of Gravenville, defeating the Ghostbreakers on three separate occasions and adding both a Headless Horseman and a powerful Thunder Spirit to my ranks."

"As for the Committee." She continued before the swordsman could cut in. "Even they can make mistakes, just because Baugh ignored what he learned and lost his entire team does not mean the whole Committee is at fault. There are many skilled Ghost Masters who were nearby but unable to come because of their own campaigns, Azrael and Soulscreech to name but two. Even Juliana could have outdone Baugh but she is busy in Slaughter Creek!"

The ghost simply stood there for a few minutes, though Monzel could tell from the look in his eyes that he was processing everything she had said, searching every detail for flaws. Finally the ghost slipped the sword back into a sheath on his back and returned his attention to her.

"I will offer you a deal. There are three other spirits trapped within these walls, spirits trapped by the fool Baugh's orders before he was driven away. They would not listen when I warned them of the danger and paid the price while I remained free but unable to help them. If you agree to find a way to free them all then I will swear on my honor to follow you into battle against those who would threaten us."

Stunned at the proposal but also pleased that she had been able to sway the fierce warrior Monzel put out a hand to seal the agreement. "I agree, I will do everything in my power to restore freedom to the other ghosts of this castle."

"Excellent!" The ghost boomed as he grasped her hand. "Send them to the great hall when they are free so I will know your progress. First though I will tell you what I know of their prisons."

"The youngling, Clarence came with Baugh, quite an eager lad though a little too blindly loyal in my opinion. He ended up sealed away in one of the chests in the treasury. Turns out that particular chest was enchanted so that the contents could not escape. I shudder to think what the original owner may have kept in there but now Clarence is the occupant." A hint of sorrow seemed to sneak into his voice as he spoke of the foreign ghost.

"Lady Ann should be the easiest of the three as she is simply stranded on the roof of the main tower, too scared of the height to get down herself. She insists that a mortal come up there for her to latch onto…'A knight to save the damsel' I believe were her exact words. Still, we've got plenty of mortals hanging around."

"Morgan's a good one though. He was an honorable knight back when he was alive but a bit unlucky with the armor. The way he tells it he was forever getting stuck inside and having to get his squire to pry it off him. He wouldn't just buy another suit though, it was his family armor and he refused to part with it.

When Baugh turned up he decided that poor Morgan should pop out of one of the suits of armor over in the South wing and give the tourists a good scare. As luck would have it though the suit Baugh chose was Morgan's ancestral armor and the old fool didn't even notice until he was already inside. Of course his squire isn't around now so he's stuck until someone else figures out how to get him out."

As he finished speaking and watched Monzel finish writing a few notes on a blank page of her book he turned toward one of the doors. "I'll be waiting in the great hall when you're done. Don't forget to send the others to me."

Thinking about what he had said as she watched him vanish up a set of stairs Monzel realized she was wasting time and closing her book with a loud thump the Ghost Master hurried back outside…

Realizing that restoring the ghost's freedom would require her full attention the first order Monzel gave when she returned to her team was putting Christie in charge of restoring the castle's reputation as a spooky place to visit.

Leaving the floating brain and the horseman to Christie's command the Ghost Master took the remaining members of the haunting team with her as she set off on her mission…

Cloaked in gray storm clouds Christie set foot in the courtyard, gazing at the imposing structure. Behind her Dragoon stroked his horse's neck and Terroreyes floated patiently, eyes looking in all directions. Knowing she only had two ghosts to work with, Christie was looking forward to adding her own style of haunting to the night's events.

With a small movement the storm spirit sent several chunks of her cloak drifting up into the sky. Minutes passed before a near deafening clap of thunder silenced the conversation of the tour group nearby. As the startled mortals looked up at the sky the wind picked up, obscuring the moon in fat clouds that first dripped and then poured water down on Nightmare Hill. Soaked the small group of mortals made a beeline for the doors, planning to wait out the storm inside the castle.

Christie watched them until they vanished before turning to her duo. "Dragoon you stay out here and make sure nobody leaves, but don't scare them away. Terroreyes you're with me."

As the headless rider nudged his horse into motion and trotted away the storm spirit and the apparition headed inside, neither one paying the least bit of attention to the woman in the fur hat they passed in the hall…

Knowing that Christie would see to the haunting, Monzel was able to head for the Treasury without worry while listening to the mortals complaining about the sudden storm. Upon entering the room she discovered that it had been turned into a museum. A number of display cases showed off items that had been found in and around the castle. A number of chests were pushed against one wall.

Despite this it only took a few minutes to locate Clarence's prison. As she stepped close to it Monzel could feel the enchantment coming off the wood and metal of the box. She also quickly discovered that communication with the trapped haunter was impossible. She seriously doubted the ghost was simply refusing to talk to a potential rescuer.

"Think you can do anything?" Monzel asked as she glided over to Boo who gave her a big grin and gestured in the general direction of the chest. Immediately several items burst from their cases as the Spook's telekinetic powers swept the liberated collection of old tools, books and household objects over to the chest.

Monzel was rooted to the spot with awe as she saw the once wild ghost's careful use of his power, directing different items with the ease that came of great experience. Using things that aren't meant to be tools takes time though and at least ten minutes passed before the sound of wood snapping filled the room and the chest split down the middle, metal bands flickering with a brief purplish light as the ancient enchantment was destroyed.

From the ruins rose a thin spirit with a long chain gripped in one hand. Seeing the cloaked figure of Monzel standing in the shadows near the door he floated over, head bowed. "S-S-Sorry sir, I d-d-d-didn't mean to get stuck." The ghost said with a nervous stutter.

Then, apparently sensing that something wasn't right he raised his head and instead of Baugh's angry face found himself meeting Monzel's warm gaze.

The surprised ghost started to stutter an apology but she cut him off with a gesture. "No apology needed, I blame the shadows." Monzel said with a smile. "Baugh left a while ago and I'm in charge here now." She explained as the ghost looked confused.

"Do you know where the great hall is?" She asked and continued as the Spook nodded. "Good, go there and you'll find a Scottish ghost. Wait with him."

Looking quite happy to be free the Spook zipped off down the hall, rattling his chain eagerly as he went.

"Boo, nice work. Though maybe a little less destructive next time." She commented as she took in the shattered glass of display cases littering the floor…

Meanwhile the mortals were enjoying a little unexpected ice skating, courtesy of Terroreyes icy breath while Christie enjoyed a rousing game of Spin the Mortal. Fortunately for the ghosts these mortals were true lovers of the supernatural and instead of being terrified by the haunting were thrilled to be present at such an event.

Clarence passed by the room on his way to the Great Hall and briefly considered joining the fun but decided that following orders would be better and so continued on his way, still rattling his chain…

Coming through the roof of the main tower, Monzel found Christie's storm still going strong. Lightning tore across the sky while thunder rumbled ominously and the wind whipped the rain in different directions. Crouched against one wall was a white figure. Everything from her hair to her dress was a pure white, completely devoid of even the slightest hint of color. Thinking back on her classes with Rakarth Monzel remembered hearing about White Ladies, spirits who wandered in silence.

The figure looked up as the Ghost Master approached and her eyes filled with hope. "Please, save me my lady." Monzel started as the spirit's voice spoke in her mind. "Find a knight who can lead me to freedom."

With a silent promise to return Monzel sank back through the roof, a cunning plan beginning to form in her mind…if only she had the power to pull it off…

Finding Morgan turned out to be far more difficult as the knightly ghost's armor was part of a long line that stood guard in the castle's throne room. Not wanting to destroy anymore then she had to, Monzel set 404 loose in the hope that the beetle could locate the proper suit before they overstayed their welcome.

Able to do little except watch the Gremlin skitter back and forth across the vibrantly colored rug she turned her thoughts to fine-tuning her plan to win Lady Ann's freedom.

Monzel was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't notice 404's return until Cuare pecked lightly at her ear. Seeing that he had the Ghost Master's attention the beetle started chattering at her and then zipped over to one of the more ancient suits, slightly rusted but obviously of fine quality.

"He says the one we're looking for is in there but seems to be asleep." Cuare translated. "He tried to wake him but failed so it seems we'll need to do as our friend said and break him out."

"He must be a deep sleeper." Monzel said. "I don't think there are many people or ghosts that could sleep with a big beetle running across them."

"I don't know if we have the strength to free him. We didn't anticipate this and with Firetail back home I don't see a way." Cuare said sadly.

"I don't think we need fire for this job." Monzel replied thoughtfully. "Boo, go tell Christie to send Terroreyes and Dragoon here. I need their powers." With a jaunty salute the Spook took off down the hall to relay his Ghost Master's orders…

Christie arrived in a swirl of grey cloud with Terroreyes and they waited with Monzel until the headless horseman arrived, appearing through one of his shimmering blue portals. Once he had brought his horse to a stop near the group Monzel directed their attention at the armor.

"One of the spirits Baugh left trapped here is asleep within that suit of armor. 404 tried and failed to wake him so we'll be breaking Morgan out. As you can see we don't have a fire elemental with us tonight but there are other ways to break things." She explained.

"Terror, I need you to breathe the coldest breath you can, freeze that suit solid enough that Dragoon can shatter it" Monzel continued as she turned to Christie. "I trust the mortals are taken care of?" She asked though the look on her face said she had heard the results of the storm spirit's work.

"Yes, we had some very enthusiastic people here tonight. They were quite happy to stay put once we started haunting. I feel confident that they will spread the word about this place." Christie replied.

"Good, then let's spring Morgan from his armor." Monzel said as she began directing the haunters to their positions…

"Now!" Monzel shouted, waving her arm for emphasis.

At her command a cloud of frigid air appeared in the air and slid slowly through the air until it reached the armor at which point the cloud took on a life of its own, wrapping around the metal like a shroud as frost spread over every inch of the metal.

Another signal and Dragoon nudged his mount with his knees, shooting from a standing position to full gallop in the blink of an eye. As rider and mount thundered down the hall, the stone echoing the sound to deafening levels Dragoon drew his curved sabre and swung as they flew past the frosted armor.

Finally, the suit, weakened by the holes made in previous attempts, developed a series of cracks from the point of impact. These spread quickly over the frozen iron as chunks of metallic ice began to fall to the floor, thudding and clanging against the floor.

Amid the rubble a spirit sat up and yawned. He stood and stretched, working the sleep out of his limbs before giving Monzel and Christie an elegant bow.

"My ladies, I thank you for freeing me from that infernal armor. I am Sir Morgan, Knight of the Flame and I pledge my loyalty to your cause."

"We are honored Sir Morgan." Monzel said, returning the bow with equal elegance. "I'm afraid we have little time to talk. I must ask, do you know how to possess a mortal?"

Lady Ann raised her head as the trapdoor leading to the roof swung open, smacking against the rain soaked masonry and sending water flying in all directions. Hope and surprise flared in the ghost as she watched one of the castle's tour guides climb through the door and immediately lose his hat to the wind. She was still wondering what could have brought the mortal up here in the middle of a storm when the guide spoke.

"Really Ann, why would you have let that fool Baugh talk you into coming up here? I think it's time to get down from here." He said though Ann noticed that his lips never moved and the voice had an aristocratic tone to it. At that moment things began to become clear.

"Morgan." She said, speaking mind to mind as she had with Monzel. "I could ask you how you couldn't recognize your own armor before getting trapped inside."

"Touché." Morgan replied, appearing behind the possessed mortal. "I do believe this meets your needs though. A mortal to follow down and a knight to save the damsel, well this fellow is certainly mortal and I am a knight."

The white lady smiled as she watched her chains fade to nothing. "It would appear you are right. Let us go down." With that she grabbed the tour guide by the arm and under Morgan's control the mortal headed back down, closing the trapdoor behind him…

"Well!" The Scotsman boomed as Monzel entered the great hall with Lady Ann and Morgan. "Morgan, Ann, nice to see you again. I'm sure you remember Clarence." He said waving a hand to summon the Spook over to them.

"As for you." He continued, turning his attention to the Ghost Master. "I owe you an apology. You've done what I asked, reversed what Baugh did to us. I was wrong to assume the worst when we met. You've proven yourself and as promised I, Dougal McDuncan, swear myself to your cause."

"Thank you Dougal. With you and the others joining us our team will be much stronger." Monzel said before turning and signaling Christie, who began to gather the ghosts as Monzel opened a portal back to the Ghoul Room…

As the portal closed the storm outside stopped and the clouds quickly dissipated. As the tourists left, chattering excitedly about the paranormal things they had witnessed the fur hatted woman hung back, waiting until the rest of the visitors had led before walking briskly to her car.

"Home." She said as she opened the door and slid in. "There is work to be done."

"Of course Doctor." The driver said as he steered the car out into the road…


	7. Silent Valley

Practically leaping out of the driver's seat as the car rolled to a stop, the driver ran around to open the passenger door for Dr. Brunner. Climbing out the doctor stalked across the vast space, completely ignoring the half dozen vans or the dozens of green or gray jump suited mortals rushing about with equipment or shouting directions to each other.

Pushing through a set of double doors into the Ghostbreaker's command center, filled with monitors manned by more of the green suited staff who were busily coordinating the various teams scattered about the city. Weaving among these stations Brunner made her way to a second set of doors and into the lab where all the Ghostbreaker's gear was created and maintained.

Officially run by Dr. Maureen Ramis, Brunner knew that the brilliant Ghostbreaker had not yet recovered from her team's repeated defeats in Gravenville. In truth the lab was managed by Dr. Misty Berlin, who was brilliant in her own way and certain to go far in Ramis's absence.

Brunner found the young scientist making adjustments to one of the scanners the Breaker's used to locate ghosts in the field. Ignoring Brunner's presence Misty continued working, spending several minutes replacing and rewiring pieces of the scanner. Finally she slotted a piece of plastic back over the exposed space and pressed a button on the machine's side, nodding in satisfaction as the thing beeped and lit up before falling silent, obviously not finding any spirits in the room.

As Misty set the device off to one side Brunner spoke up. "I was at the castle tonight, and while I was there I was able to watch as a bunch of ghosts invaded, destroying things and messing with the tourists."

"And was anyone hurt?" Misty asked.

"Well…Actually they were a group of ghost lovers so they had the time of their lives. That's beside the point though." Brunner replied, noticing the small smile Misty was trying to hide.

"No ghost should have been dumb enough to come back after what we did there. We captured so many spirits there it should have sent a strong message that the supernatural isn't welcome. Instead they were able to waltz in, roam the place and waltz right back out again. I thought you had installed alarms after we finished in case something like this happened?"

"I did, doesn't mean the ghosts couldn't have disabled them first though." Holding up a hand to stop Brunner's reply, she vanished out into the command center and returned a minute later, waving a piece of paper triumphantly in her hand. "Or they worked fine but nobody reported it." She said as she handed the paper over.

Eyes running over the paper Brunner saw that Misty was right. The alarms installed at the castle had gone off fine but apparently nobody had thought to report it. "Where did you find this?" She asked, determined to know who had screwed up.

"In the pile of reports we've had coming in from all over the city." Misty replied, smiling openly now. "It seems your idea of installing alarms at every major place we've been has backfired. We've got at least fifty individual alarms spread throughout the city that will alert us of even the slightest supernatural activity in addition to however many teams you've got out there now. All of them send in reports as well. Obviously we can't keep up anymore."

"Fine." Brunner said after a moment, willing to admit she had overextended her resources. "I'm sending out a team to check the castle though. When I get back we'll discuss taking some of the alarms offline."

"As you wish." Misty said, watching as the doctor left…

Monzel was surprised to discover upon returning to the Ghoul Room that Clarence was quite willing and happy to share everything he knew about his previous Ghost Master. Having been one of the original haunters assigned to Baugh, the Spook had been with him since the beginning of the failed Master's campaign.

Though much of the knowledge was less then helpful he was able to provide some information about the enemies operating within the city which she passed on to Zulban as well as a list of every haunter Baugh had commanded which she felt might prove useful if they met anymore of the trapped spirits.

After dismissing the young ghost, who zipped out of the room to practice his chain rattling skills, she slipped the list into her handbook and was just getting up to go and find Christie when the map spread over the table glowed briefly, and a small building rose from the paper.

Intrigued by how far from the city the building was Monzel stepped over to the table to touch the roof of the miniature structure. She stepped back as Balam's voice filled her head.

"Now that you have established yourself in Nightmare Hill, turn your attention to the small, abandoned town of Silent Valley. Ever since the original inhabitants were driven away by a group of powerful independent haunters we have been using it as a 'ghost town', the horrors of which supplied the local haunters with a steady flow of plasm."

"Recently though, the flow has stopped, as a group of mortal heroes have managed to seal the sources of power, effectively taking the town away from us. You must reawaken it's powers so we can put them to use. We have already made moves towards this goal. A small group of teenage filmmakers have been tricked into coming to town. Now it is your turn to trick them into breaking the seals. Once that is done show them the full power of the supernatural. Just make sure their tape gets out of town undamaged, it will lure new 'adventurers' to Silent Valley."

As Balam's voice faded Monzel sent Cuare out to find Christie while she considered the various problems before her…

The portal deposited them in the town square, right in front of the statue that served as one of the focus points they had come to restore. Around them the town spread, roughly a dozen buildings in various states of collapse.

Monzel turned her attention to the statue, and the dagger stabbed into the stone man's chest. Reaching up she wrapped her hand around the handle and instantly fell to her knees with a cry as pain surged through her body. As her vision cleared she saw her team gathered around her with worried looks.

"I'm ok." She said as she got shakily to her feet, though she was cursing herself silently. She should have known that the knife would be protected against spirits. Otherwise someone could have removed it before. Shaking her hand to get the last bit of pain out she walked off to find the other focus points…

As she walked among the broken buildings Monzel shivered at the dead feeling about the place, as if all the life had been sucked out of the area, though the plant life that slowly worked to claim the town was proof that this was wrong. Stopping suddenly, she realized that it was the power that was missing. She could barely feel any power around her at all. Apparently the mortals had been quite thorough when they sealed the focus points…

It took little time to locate the remaining foci, one turned out to be a book, in the attic of one of the houses, protected within a small ward while the other was a sealed well in the half flooded basement of another house. Neither was as obvious as the knife had been but Monzel recognized them soon enough.

Returning to her team she saw that the filmmakers had arrived and were already rolling as they explored the area at the far end of the square. Quickly giving orders she sent her team off to prepare…

"So why exactly are we here again?" Joanie Garrod asked, looking at the half collapsed shop before her.

"We got a tip that there was something supernatural about this place." Alvin Appleby replied as he kneeled down to examine a pile of scrap wood that had once been the storefront.

"Well something needs to happen soon." Jackie Quick said from behind the camera. "We're wasting film."

"I'm sure there is something here." Alvin said as he stood and moved into Jackie's shot. "This place has a weird feeling about it. And besides, this place was abandoned almost overnight for no obvious reason, seems rather mysterious to me."

"Um, hate to break up this fascinating conversation." Joanie said with a hint of sarcasm as she came to join them. "Has anyone seen Haley?"

"She said she was going to go look around a bit after Alvin got distracted going through rubble." Jackie said, laughing as Alvin threw her a glare. "She headed off that way." She continued, gesturing in the direction of the residential side of the town.

"Come on then." Alvin said with a sigh. "We'd better go look for her before she gets into trouble…"

Haley whirled around as an old, moss covered board finally gave up and snapped, clattering to the ground and briefly shattering the near silence of the town. She was surprised that the buildings in this part of town were more intact then those around the square. Several had gaping holes in their walls and floors but others looked almost livable.

Standing on her tiptoes to see over a tall fence the teen filmmaker saw what had obviously once been a beautiful yard, obviously much loved by whoever had lived in the house. Now though the grass was overgrown, the bushes and flowers dead and choked by weeds. A large doghouse stood in the far corner, under a vast oak tree, a thick chain leading from the doghouse to a rotted leather collar.

Haley was just turning to continue her exploration when she felt something tug at her mind and found herself instead going through the lopsided gate and across the yard to enter the house. The inside was nearly as bad as the yard, thick vines creeping across the floors and once nice furniture falling to pieces in every room.

The tugging drew her to the staircase across from the front door and as she ascended she saw that the second floor was in the same shape, though it was obvious to Haley even in her somewhat distracted state that only the passage of time had changed things. There were no signs that the house had been vacated without warning but the question of why the inhabitants would leave everything behind lingered in her mind as she reached the top of the stairs.

The attic was different from the rest of the house; the room gleamed as if it had been freshly scrubbed mere minutes before. The attic was mostly empty except for a thick, ornately bound book sitting on a podium near the window.

Whatever had been tugging at her seemed to fade as she approached the podium but by that point Haley was too intrigued to walk away. This was exactly the sort of strange thing they had come looking for after all.

She flinched slightly as she reached her fingers toward the book, expecting something to happen but when nothing did she became bolder and laid a hand on the cover, feeling the smooth leather against her skin. Taking a quick look around to make sure nothing was trying to sneak up on her, she flipped the cover open.

She began flipping excitedly through the pages, pausing briefly whenever a word or picture jumped out at her, increasingly amazed at the discovery she had made and knowing that her finding it first would drive Alvin crazy.

Her rapid page flipping stopped as she reached a page that was just line after line of words written in small letters in order to fit more on the page. The word Ziggurath jumped out at her as the only word written in a normal size. Grinning at the mistake in spelling Haley squinted her eyes and was able to make out a few words here and there. As near as she could figure the writer of the book had bound something at a ziggurat in order to protect the townspeople from the town.

She had never heard of any ziggurats in Nightmare Hill and with the suspicion that she was missing something she swung her pack off and shuffled some supplies around to make room for the book. As she turned her attention back to the still open book she took a step backwards.

The words were now bright, glowing from within as if on fire. Lines had begun to appear around several words including the misspelled ziggurat, slowly forming images that were far too small for the scared mortal to see.

The whole house shook as the book brightened to near blinding, sending Haley tumbling onto her side. She thought she heard someone whisper beside her ear just before her mind was bombarded by images, some she recognized from the book and others she did not. As the pictures flashed through her mind she began to understand, not just the words written in the book but also what had not been said.

One final image appeared in her mind's eye, two pictures placed side by side, showing the truth and the lie. The image vanished abruptly as if someone had cut the power. Refocusing her gaze on the book she saw the glowing of the pages was intensifying further. Thanks to the images she knew what was coming but could not make her legs move. She could only scream as the glow vanished all at once, the backlash of the raw power that had lay trapped for so many years sending her flying across the room…

Haley woke to the sound of voices around her and as her vision cleared she saw Alvin and Jackie standing off to the side talking. Joanie was watching her and let out a cry when she saw Haley's eyes open before rushing over to help her up.

"You ok?" Jackie asked as she came over, camera hanging at her side as she looked her friend over.

"I think so, just got knocked out I think." Haley replied.

"But how? There's almost nothing in here." Alvin asked, waving his arm at the room.

Haley grinned mischievously at him. "A backlash of power from an old book." She said, enjoying the look on Alvin's face at the news. "Couldn't read very much of it but it showed me things…before it sent me flying anyway."

"What did you see?" Jackie asked, switching the camera on to record her words.

"I'm not sure, there were a lot of images flashing through my mind, something about a ziggurat and some sort of powerful creature being bound there. Then right at the end a pair of images, those are still really clear but I don't know which is telling the truth, it seemed like the power ran out or overloaded or something because they just cut off before I got blasted." She explained, finding it strange how she recalled certain things so clearly while others were less clear.

"Do you have any ideas on what to do now?" Alvin asked as he picked up the book from its podium and slipped it into his pack to examine later.

"I don't know…There's something about one of the basements, sealed after a flood I think, I'm not sure what it means though." Haley answered, shaking her head as she tried to piece things together.

"Well it shouldn't be that hard to find a flooded basement. Can't be too many of those in what's left of this town." Joanie said. "We can probably find it with a bit of work."

"Besides we already searched a couple of houses while we were looking for you. They didn't have flooded basements though." Alvin added.

Having decided to search out the flooded basement and see what secrets it might hold, the group began planning the best way to do so while others watched…

"I'm glad the girl is alright." Monzel said as she and her small team watched the mortals talk. "I didn't expect the energy contained in that book to be so strong."

"Well she survived and from the sound of it she picked up a few things as well." Cuare said from her perch on the Ghost Master's arm. "And it seems they are going to track down the second focus point all by themselves." The owl said with a laugh.

"Yes, but there is still the matter of that knife to deal with, but at least we have some power now." Monzel replied having felt the slight change in the atmosphere of the town as the first foci was unsealed and power began to trickle forth once more.

"Indeed, I would advise holding back for now, let them search for themselves. If they fail we can guide them to the basement but I think we should keep our presence secret for the time being." Cuare suggested.

"I believe you're right and there is no harm in waiting and watching. The foci have been sealed for years; I don't think another hour or two will hurt." Monzel agreed as she and her owlish advisor returned their gaze to the young mortals…

The pair silently followed the group as they went from house to house, watching as they carefully searched every inch of the basements and finally, and with only a small nudge from Monzel they reached the correct basement. Dark water sloshed against the walls as the mortals bashed the doors in, the locks being far too stout to break.

As they moved carefully down the slick but intact stone stairs, Alvin in the lead with Haley and Joanie behind him and Jackie bringing up the rear with the camera, they could see a variety of water-loving plants had found a home here and apparently thrived.

"Well we found it." Alvin said, sweeping the walls with his flashlight.

"Any idea what we're supposed to do now?" Joanie asked, turning to Haley.

"I'm…not sure." The girl replied, still somewhat confused by all the images and information she had received. "I just know we were supposed to open the basement."

"Well look around." Alvin said. "Let's see if there is anything to be found in here."

Though their searching revealed nothing but water and plants they did notice the rippling of something rising from beneath the water. As the mortals gathered around the spot where the ripples were coming from Monzel moved close as well, her curiosity nearly making her forget to remain hidden.

All of them, mortal and ghost were surprised when a strange, winged, snake-like creature emerged from the water, flapping it's wings experimentally as it sat on the surface. The creature briefly glanced around before taking to the air, buzzing the mortals but carving a wide arc around Monzel, Jackie's camera following it as it flew, catching every moment on film until the winged serpent darted out of the open door.

"I'm not sure what that was." Jackie said, replaying the video. "But I think that qualifies as something supernatural."

Monzel who had watched the serpent with awe, realized that she could feel the flow of power more strongly and with a quick word to Cuare, sent the owl off to begin the final stage of the plan while also making a mental note to visit the Committee Library when she got back and do a little research…

As the quartet of mortals reentered the town square Monzel signaled Firetail and the square was abruptly surrounded by a wall of flames and as Jackie whipped the camera around and the others looked around for an escape the sound of pounding hooves echoed off the ground and a moment later a horse leapt through the flames, it's rider waving a sword as it charged towards the teens.

It was at that point that things went weird though. One of the mortals went for the knife embedded in the statue as planned but when Haley pulled it free of the stone the hole immediately vanished as a glow similar to the one that had come from the book coated the statue. Remembering her own experience with such a thing Haley shouted to her friends and together they jumped through the wall, which had burned low as Firetail was distracted by what had happened in the square.

Monzel was expecting a similar spectacle to what had happened with the book but as the glow became stronger, the power building up until she could feel it the Ghost Master realized that remaining might not be the best idea and turned to shout orders to her team…

It was too late though and she could only watch as the glow vanished and as before a wave of energy swept out from the statue, spreading over the town and slamming into the ghosts, scattering the team across the area as it spread further.

Monzel landed on the edge of town, rolling several times before being halted by a tree root, leaving the unconscious Ghost Master among the shadows of the forest…

Monzel woke with a groan, taking a few moments to remember what had happened before trying to get up. She was certainly startled when she felt a hand wrap around one arm and haul her to her feet, the speed of the ascent leaving her a bit light-headed.

"Next time you might want to try and avoid getting blasted across town. It doesn't seem like a good way to travel." A familiar voice said jokingly.

As her vision cleared and her head stopped spinning Monzel could see Christie standing in front of her, a small grin on her face. "What are you doing here?" She asked curiously.

"We felt that blast of power at the Ghoul Room and when the map changed and you didn't return we started to worry so I thought we should come give you some back up." The Storm Spirit explained, idly twirling a small chunk of cloud around her hand.

"It packed a bit more of a punch then I thought it would." Monzel replied, shaking her head at the understatement.

"Looks like it. You ok?" Christie asked, looking her battered friend over.

"I feel like I got hit by a couple trucks but I think I'll live." She replied.

"Let's hope it doesn't go that far." Christie said, smiling.

It took a moment for her tired mind to realize what she'd said but a moment later the pair were laughing at the unintentional joke.

Their laughter was trailing off when Cuare dropped from the sky to perch on the tree root.

"Good to see we survived this night in one piece." The owl said, though amusement was plain in her voice as well. "Let's just hope we don't have to do that again."

"Where's the rest of the team?" Monzel asked, once more focused on the priority of getting her team back home.

"They're already on their way back." Cuare reported. "Dragoon and Firetail were the worst hit, being right there with you but those two have already been through plenty with you, they'll recover in no time."

"Good, I think we could all use a bit of a break." Monzel replied, managing to muster the strength to open a portal back to the Ghoul Room for the three of them.

Meanwhile, the strange winged snake that had been flying around returned to the basement, sinking beneath the water and vanishing into the darkness…


End file.
